Representative Adriano Espaillat Introduces New Bill to Reauthorize the EPA’s Largest Recycling Grant Program

WASHINGTON, DC - In recognition of April 2024's Earth Month and ahead of Earth Day, Representative Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) introduced the Solid Waste Infrastructure for Recycling Grant Program (SWIFR) Reauthorization Act, to reauthorize the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) largest and most important recycling grant program for cities, states, and tribal lands across the United States.

The Solid Waste Infrastructure for Recycling Grant Program (SWIFR) was established in 2020 and was later funded through President Biden's 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law at $55 million per year for five years. Administered by the EPA, SWIFR offers three funding opportunities to enhance recycling and waste management infrastructure: noncompetitive grants for states and territories, competitive grants for communities, and competitive grants for Tribes and Intertribal consortia. To date, the program has allocated $165 million in federal funding, and its competitive grants have received over 400 applications. The current high demand from cities, states, territories, and tribes for all three funding options underscores the program's popularity and the critical recycling infrastructure needs that it addresses. While the program is currently only authorized through the end of Fiscal Year 2025, the SWIFR Reauthorization Act would extend the program for an additional decade through Fiscal Year 2035.

"As a long-time advocate for the environment and sustainability, I am proud to introduce the SWIFR Reauthorization Act," said Rep. Espaillat. "Over the first few years of its existence, SWIFR has proven itself to be one of the EPA's most critical grant programs, both for the State of New York and throughout the U.S. and its territories. For far too long, trash pollution has plagued our rivers and oceans, and limited recycling infrastructure at the local level has failed to prevent recyclable waste from ending up in our landfills and our bodies of water. By investing in better waste and recycling infrastructure and practices at the state and local levels, we can clean up our nation and our waterways, reduce carbon emissions, and create a healthier environment for our children and the future."

The SWIFR Reauthorization Act also contains a suggested increase in annual funding for the program to $65 million per year. This proposed increase would allow more municipalities to take advantage of the program, helping the EPA build a legacy of recycling infrastructure in both New York and in communities throughout the nation.

Rep. Espaillat's bill was cosponsored by six of his congressional colleagues and endorsed by Food & Water Watch, Climate Crisis Policy, and other environmental groups.

Read the bill's text here.

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Representative Espaillat is the first Dominican American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives and his congressional district includes Harlem, East Harlem, West Harlem, Hamilton Heights, Washington Heights, Inwood, Marble Hill and the north-west Bronx. First elected to Congress in 2016, Representative Espaillat is serving his fourth term in Congress. Representative Espaillat currently serves as a member of the influential U.S. House Committee on Appropriations responsible for funding the federal government's vital activities and serves as Ranking Member of the Legislative Branch Subcommittee of the committee during the 118th Congress. He is also a member of the House Budget Committee and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), where he serves in a leadership role as the Deputy Chair as well as Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI). Rep. Espaillat is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) and serves as a Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus. To find out more about Rep. Espaillat, visit online at https://espaillat.house.gov/.

Media inquiries: Candace Person at [email protected]